


Lazy Afternoons

by HolyTeapot



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Birthday, Children, Family Fluff, Fluff, Gen, Pre-Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-30
Updated: 2018-04-30
Packaged: 2019-04-30 08:06:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,956
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14492556
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HolyTeapot/pseuds/HolyTeapot
Summary: Terra and Aqua are five years old. One day, Yen Sid decides to visit his old friend Eraqus.





	Lazy Afternoons

**Author's Note:**

> Just a bagatelle I enjoyed picturing in my head.

The sun was setting orange on the grass field next to the square at Land of Departure, as a small circle of purple flowers was pressed by the shoes of a child running with a sword.

“Wait for me!”

The brown-haired child let out a laugh as he jumped on the spot, slowing his pace a bit to let a scrawny girl catch up with him.

“Keep up, Aqua!” he exclaimed.

Aqua bent, her hands on her knees “I am carrying a backpack, you dumdum!” she complained.

Terra shook his shoulders “So? You are my healer, you are supposed to carry things!”

“I am not _your_ healer, I am the great mage and you are my soldier!” she shuffled her backpack off her shoulder “you should carry the weight!” she threw the backpack at the young boy, who laughed as he caught it mid-air.

“What did you put inside it? Bricks?” he teased.

Aqua pouted.

“’tis just books. I figured we would need them.”

“Books? For what, a bonefire?”

That cost him a punch on his arm.

“Ow! Okay, what for then?”

“Well…” she bit her lip, looking sideways “ ‘figured a great mage would have spellbook with them!”

“Yes, _one_ spellbook, Aqua, not a library!”

“It’s more spells this ways!”

She stuck her tongue at him, her fists closed. He laughed.

“Come on, I’ll carry your library for a bit! You just keep your wand ready!” he said, starting to run again.

This time Aqua was up to him, her fist steady on her star-pointed wand. Terra, the backpack in front of his chest, was swinging a small wooden sword.

Then, he stopped all of the sudden, Aqua nearly hitting him.

“What is it?” she cried.

He put a finger on his lips “Ssh” he pointed at the bent tree on the corner of the square “there’s a monster there!” he whispered.

Aqua tightened her grip “I am ready when you are, but be careful.” She said.

He nodded. He put down the backpack, passing it to Aqua “Here, or it might get me. Watch my back, I’ll go front.”

She nodded “okay. I got your back.” She said.

They nodded, and looked at the bent tree. In front of their eyes, an evil heartless like in the stories Master Eraqus told them was spreading its long angular fingers, threatening the light around it.

Terra let out a battle cry, lounging himself in a graceless run towards the bent tree. Aqua ran behind him, hiding behind a column. As Terra hit the tree with his wooden sword, she waved her star-pointed wand and explaimed “Ice!”

The tree, of course, remained unharmed.

And, as trees do, did not really have any reaction to the two children harassing it; or, if it did, it did not say anything, either because it could not or because it thought it was not really worth its time.

“It is a sturdy monster!” said Terra, gritting his teeth.

Aqua arrived behind him “We should attack it at the same time!”

“Alright! Use fire!”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes!”

“What if we burn everything?”

“We can’t let this monster win!”

Aqua nodded solemnly. Terra widened his stance, then he attacked.

“Goodbye!” he cried.

Aqua pointed her star-pointed wand “FIRE!” she shouted.

The tree, of course, looked at most slightly importuned at the attack, but, as trees do, elected to put on a façade and pretend none of this was happening.

Terra smiled, putting his wooden sword on his shoulder.

“We did it, Mage Aqua!” he panted.

“The monster is defeated, Sir Terra.” She agreed.

“Oh, but I see another monster there!” he said, pointing at the stars.

Climbing up, a triangular hat emerged, followed by the shape of their guardian, Eraqus.

“UNCLE SID, UNCLE SID!” Terra cried, abandoning his sword on the ground and running towards the tall figure with the pointy hat. Aqua walked slowly towards Eraqus.

“Terra, how many times do I have to tell you…” started Eraqus.

“Oh, Eraqus, let him call me whatever he wants, after all,” waved Eraqus “I changed his nappies.”

Terra grabbed the blue robes of Yen Sid “Are you staying for dinner?” he asked, jumping on the spot. Aqua grabbed Eraqus’ robe with one hand. Eraqus responded with a pat on her head.

“I am indeed, young man.” said Yen Sid, with a serious face.

He turned towards Aqua, his wide eyes and small pupils scrutinising her face.

He looked like an angry eagle.

She hid behind Eraqus.

“And who is this one?” asked Yen Sid “last time I counted you had _one_ child.”

Eraqus let out a small laugh, giving Aqua a pat on her back “Her name’s Aqua.” He said.

Yen Sid kneeled at Aqua’s height and offered his hand.

“Hello, Aqua. I am Master Yen Sid.” He said, his voice suddenly warm.

She looked at his bony, wrinkly hand, and then at his pointy face, and those eyes that seemed to be coming out of his skull at any moment to attack her. Her attention shifted then to his pointy hat.

A real, proper mage.

She hid behind Eraqus.

Yen Sid laughed awkwardly “We are a bit shy, I see. Well,” he said, standing up “I hope we’ll know each other better later on.” He said, attempting a smile.

She nodded, still partly hidden behind Eraqus. She had many questions to ask him now that she knew he was a real, actual mage.

The two men started walking towards the main building, Terra hopping next to Yen Sid, waving a stick he had found on the ground, Aqua firmly gripping Eraqus’ robe.

 

Eraqus’ kitchen was nothing special, really. It was not exceedingly small, but you could not fit more than two people in it, which Yen Sid thought was rather outrageous for a castle aimed at training new wielders. It did, however, have an island, which made up for excellent counter space.

Yen Sid had been put at onions’ duty, as he proved over and over to be utterly unable to cry. Eraqus still remembered the bet he had with Xehanort when they were young to try and see what would take to make Yen Sid shed one single tear.

They tried chopping onions while he was napping.

They tried changing the placement of furniture so that his pinkie would go hitting the angles.

They tried pretending Xehanort was dying and only had two months left.

Once they even put chilli powder on his fingers while he was sleeping waiting for him to rub his eyes.

Nothing, he did not even notice. Yen Sid was emotionally and physically unable to cry, and that was a fact.

So, it followed that Yen Sid should always be on onions’ duty whenever in a kitchen with another person.

“Make them thin, the kids don’t like onions too much, so I try to make them less visible as possible.” He said.

Yen Sid nodded, following through.

“So,” he said, while chopping an onion “where did you find the girl?” he asked.

Eraqus sighed, stirring the vegetables in the pan.

“Traverse Town,” he said “during a heartless attack. She grabbed me by the robe and hid behind me as I defeated a Fat Bandit.”

“Must have been scary for her. What about her parents?”

Eraqus shook his head “No trace of them. I asked around, but no one knew about any Kai and Hali, so I told her she could stay with me until we found them.”

“Mh…” Yen Sid frowned as he chopped the onions “Do you think…?”

“Yes, well, there is not much of a chance, but it’s still a chance, isn’t it?” argued Eraqus.

“I am just saying that to be in Traverse Town…”

“It’s lucky she is alive.” Completed Eraqus “still, her world could just be asleep. Or her parents might have ended up in some other world.”

Yen Sid snorted “that would be a first.”

“I am not giving up, not yet.” Said Eraqus “I want to be thorough, I do not want to have to tell a child her parents have been eaten by heartless if there is a slight chance they might still be out there.”

“Mh,” Yen Sid nodded “but what if they aren’t?”

“Then,” Eraqus sighed “then I will just keep her with me. I can afford it, and it would be good for Terra. He has been closing himself more and more since Nexi died.” He took some spices “I thought a friend would be good to him. And it was. They are the same age. I haven’t seen him this bubbly in a year. And I am away so often, I feel like this is the best thing for everyone.”

“Are you going to train her?”

“If she wants.” Eraqus smiled “I think she touched my keyblade, but I am still going to respect her choice if she doesn’t want to become a wielder. It’s a hard life.”

“It is.” Yen Sid sighed “sometimes I think I should retire myself.”

Eraqus laughed “You never would.”

 

Aqua moved her legs on the chair, trying to get them to touch the floor as she slowly ate the peas from her curry: if she ate those now then she could enjoy the rest of the dish without that disgusting flavour, she thought.

Yen Sid had been giving her looks throughout the whole dinner, but was now laughing with Eraqus, telling him something about his ‘prentice, or some word like that.

“… and then I woke up, and I find a huge flood on the ground floor!” he told him.

“Seriously?”

“Yes! I had to intervene! At three in the morning!”

“What did you do with him?”

“What could I do?” he ate a bite from his plate “I gave him a spank on his behind and let him go away with that.”

“Just like that?”

“He’s young and careless, but I think this experience will teach him to be more responsible.”

“Still,” argued Eraqus, looking at his rice; his look shifted to Terra “ – Terra close your mouth when you chew” he turned to Yen Sid again as Terra gulped down a bite that was way bigger than what one could expect a child of his size to eat “do you think he might foster any darkness? This ambition he has…”

“Will tone down as he learns, like every child’s impulsivity.” Interjected Yen Sid “I won’t argue that he does not have any darkness inside, but so do you, so do I, everyone does.”

Eraqus gave a quick look at Terra and Aqua.

Yen Sid arched one of his eyebrows “I know what you are thinking, but that’s what many Shadows are. This ambition too will flow away as he gains more control of his powers and learns he doesn’t need to rush things to reach his goals.”

Eraqus nodded slowly, frowning.

Yen Sid turned to Terra “So, young man, I hope you have been less catastrophic than my hopeless apprentice!”

Terra beamed as he gulped down another bite.

“I have!”

“Clean your mouth” Eraqus interjected, already there with a tissue in his hand to clean Terra’s sauce-moustache.

“Daaaad!” he complained. Eraqus finished cleaning him and went back to his position.

“So, what did you do?” asked Yen Sid “I heard your birthday was last week.”

“Oh, yes!” rejoiced Terra, rocking happily on his chair “I turned six! I am big now!”

Yen Sid chuckled “you really are.”

“And Dad got me a new wooden sword, and Aqua made a hero’s cape, and…” he jumped off the chair, showing Yen Sid his shirt, which had a silhouette of a Moogle on it and the word “KUPO” written in red over the illustration “I got this!” he exclaimed.  

“That’s a nice shirt!” said Yen Sid.

“Thank you!”

“I gather you read the book I gave you?” chuckled Yen Sid.

Eraqus laughed “he read it at least five times. No one will take him away from Sir Moogle of Twilight Town now.”

“It is so good!” chimed in Terra “especially when he passes the sirens and puts wax in his ears so he can't hear their voices! Do sirens really exist? Did you ever meet one?”

“Well,” said Yen Sid “I never went there personally, but I heard that your father went to a world that was inhabited by them.”

Terra looked at Eraqus with big eyes full of wonder and sparkly expectations.

Eraqus chuckled “King Triton is hardly a siren to figure in one of the Moogle’s stories.” He explained “but if you want I can tell you about it next time.”

“YAY!” exclaimed Terra.

“ _If_ you finish your curry.”

“But daaaad,” complained Terra “you put mushrooms in it, you know I don’t like mushrooms.”

“Terra…”

“Alright.” He pouted “can I at least not eat the mushrooms?”

“No. Eat them.”

“Why?”

“Would Moogle eat the mushrooms?” asked Yen Sid.

Terra sighed, uncertain. Then he started eating silently.

“What about you, little miss? How are you finding this grumpy old man?” asked Yen Sid.

Aqua blushed, her eyes shifting on the hat Yen Sid had politely put on the side of his chair.

“’tis fine.” She said quietly.

Yen Sid smiled, looking at her big mage hat she had also placed behind her on her chair.

“Do you like magic, Aqua?” he asked.

She looked at him with big eyes, and nodded.

“So, do you want to be a mage?”

She hesitated, but nodded, blushing.

“She will be a great mage one day!” said Terra “She is good!” he added “last time I fell down a tree and she cured my knee!”

Yen Sid frowned, interested “is this true, Aqua?”

She nodded “But I don’t know how to do it again. It was an accident.” She explained.

Yen Sid smiled “most of the best discoveries are.” He said “I myself am a mage, do you know?”

She nodded “I saw the hat.” She said.

“I thought you were a keyblade Master!” exclaimed Terra.

“I _am_ a keyblade Master! A man can do both!”

Aqua’s eyes were sparkling: a mage _and_ a keyblade master.

Yen Sid smiled “never forget it, Aqua. You can be whatever you want to be.”

She nodded solemnly.

“And if you decide to study magic, and you become good at it, well…” he raised one eyebrow, his aquiline face in a slight smile “then if you want I can give you some lessons and teach you some spells not even Master Eraqus has ever managed to pull off.”

“Hey!”

“You were never good at magic, face it.”

“That is… not true.”

“I really hope Terra took after Nexi. You can barely heal people. And you refuse to.” He leaned closer to the kids “never wait for this one to heal you in a battle, he is too focused on hitting the big bad heartless to pay attention to what’s happening around him.”

Terra laughed, Aqua smiled.

“Oh, Uncle Sid, I was forgetting!” Terra said “I also got a tele… tele…” he let some air out of his mouth “TE-LE-SCO-PE,” he spelled, and looked at Eraqus for approval (Eraqus nodded) “but I don’t know how to use it, can you teach me?”

Yen Sid looked at Eraqus, who sighed in a ‘your choice, mate’ manner, his hands up in the air.

He smiled at young Terra “well, what is life if you cannot look at the stars?” he said, and got up from his chair “forward, young man, show me this telescope!”

 

A week later, Aqua headed to the dining room, her feet dancing a bit as she hummed a birthday song to herself, holding a chocobo plushie close to her chest.

“And we’ll dance and sing and play,  
All together on your birthday…”

She stopped as she spotted Eraqus in the kitchen.

“Morning, Mister ‘qus” She said.

“Aqua, I told you: it’s E-ra-qus.”

“ E’qus”

“Eraqus”

“Ewqus.”

“Nevermind I’ll settle for that. How is my favourite birthday girl?” he asked.

She smiled a smile without three teeth “I lost this teeth here today!” she grinned.

“Oh, we’ll have to store it in the secret place then.” He said “or the Moogle won’t bring you munny!” He gave her a pat on the head “Where is Terra?”

“Sleeping.” She answered.

“Oh, well. Sit down and I shall get your breakfast ready. Do you want pancakes or toast?”

“Pancakes.”

“Okie Dokie.”

She skipped happily towards her seat on the table. As she pulled the chair with both hands, she noticed a package on it.

“Mister Ewqus” she called “There is a box here!”

“Oh, yes,” said Eraqus “That’s your birthday present. From me and Master Yen Sid.” He came in and placed some jam on the table.

Aqua looked at him with wide eyes “For me?” she asked.

Eraqus gave her another pat on the head “Who else? Come on, open it.”

He went back to the kitchen to pour the pancake batter – he knew Aqua would pick pancakes because Aqua would _always_ pick pancakes over any other food, when he heard Aqua’s cry of joy.

She stormed in the kitchen to hug him tightly, a big blue hat with stars already sitting on her head.

“Thank you thank you thank you!” she said.

“That’s not all, have you seen the rest of the box?” asked Eraqus.

She took a deep breath and went back.

Ten seconds later, another cry of joy “A SPELLBOOK! A REAL SPELLBOOK!”

“What’s all this chaos for? What?” Terra had woken up.

Aqua hugged Terra really tightly “Aqua! Let me go!”

Eraqus smiled “Terra…?” he reminded him.

“Oh, right! Happy birthday Aqua!”

Aqua let out a joyfoul “thanks!”

When Eraqus came back into the living room, she had tackled him to the ground as the hugging monster she was.

 

 


End file.
